Bobby Kunhu “Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realise that our people have yet to learn it. Democracy in India is only a top-dressing on an Indian soil which is essentially undemocratic.” ~ Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Annihilation of Caste The jurisprudence around reservations and affirmative action …
Karnan : A powerful cinematic projection of Dalit Assertion and Anger
Vidyasagar “He did not hit us because we vandalized the bus. No, he hit us because we stood tall. He hit me because I, Maadasamy’s son, was named Duryodanan.” ~ (Dialogue from Karnan) Karnan is a Tamil language film which was recently released on Amazon Prime. Karnan is the second movie directed by the Periyerum Perumal …
In Memory of Sant Ramanand Ji
Ram Dayal Ahirwar Political and social theorists are in support of subaltern theoretical development in India as an emancipatory project for the socially, religiously, gender-wise, and regionally marginal. But within the strand of Dalit politics, there are lots of contestations, there are independents, groups of activists and public intellectuals who have problematic dispositions towards words …
Covid-19: Vietnam Model versus Maharashtra Model
Dr Anuradha Bele In terms of population, Vietnam with nearly 10 crore people compares well with Maharashtra (about 11-12 crore). However, in terms of handling of Covid-19, as of 9th May 2021, Vietnam has reported 4212 cases and total 37 deaths. In Maharashtra, the total cases now stand at 53,78,452 (53 lakhs) while the …
Casteism in City Colleges and Classrooms
Aarushi Punia It is a common myth perpetrated by upper caste faculty, students, politicians, and media that caste superiority and casteism is exercised amongst uneducated people in the villages, and not amongst the educated in urban and academic spaces. The myth of city colleges and classrooms being caste-free stems from the unidentifiability of the conventional …
Assam Assembly Elections: The Hills Do Not Speak
Rakhee Naiding “Lama hemhishining jaya, lama slamma bo nangdu”(It is not enough we tread the path, we have to create them too)- A Dimasa saying Recently the Assam Assembly elections concluded, and the results were evidently a shock to many, especially after the anti CAA upheaval. All the same, people seem to have quickly accepted …
Metonymical Representation of Dalit in Ray’s Sadgati
Chandrakant Kamble Famous Hindi writer Munshi Premchand’s (1881-1936) story Sadgati (‘deliverance’ in the religious sense of the term) was picturized by legendary Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray (1921-1992) in a 1981 movie with the same name. India is celebrating Ray’s 100th birth anniversary in 2021. In academia and curriculum, Ray’s many films are considered masterpieces and …
Beyond Dalitness: Start Annihilating Caste and Claiming Humanness
Milind Thokal The process of learning and unlearning is inevitable and will continue forever but some basic concepts must always remain at the core where we must never have any confusion, keeping it more simple, straightforward, and to the point. Let’s start with the very basic word ‘Dalit’. Dalit is a Sanskrit word that means …
Contagion and Constitution – Pandemic and Preamble
Dr Jas Simran Singh Kehal The architect of our constitution felt that it is workable, flexible and strong enough to hold the country together both in peace and war time. If in recent times we have Covid-warriors and Covid war-rooms that means we are indeed at war. Let us analyze how our constitution has fared …